One bird or many?

Several sounds in one recording do not automatically mean several birds. A field note can tell you who the recordist saw, while the audio alone may leave you unsure which bird made each sound.

About 4 minutes · Pause whenever you like. Audio loads on request. Use headphones; do not broadcast recordings to wild birds.

Count the evidence before counting callers

The first source describes a small flock high in pine trees. The second describes juvenile begging calls alongside adult calls. Those notes provide context for the whole recording; they do not identify the caller of every moment in the file.

Try it with a recording

Listen to both short original recordings. Notice whether calls overlap or alternate. Then read each source note. Keep two separate statements: what you noticed in the sound and what the recordist reported seeing or identifying.

A small flock in pine trees

Field recording · 26 seconds

A 26-second original recorded by Jonathon Jongsma. The source describes a small flock; it does not supply an exact caller count for each sound.

Frequency over time for a small flock in pine trees. Read the source notes below for the archive's description. — Read left to right as time passes; higher marks represent higher frequencies. Colour shows recorded energy, not the bird’s intent. Recording levels affect brightness.

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Recording source and limits

Archive identifier: xc110263.

Jonathon Jongsma, 2012-09-15. CC BY-SA 3.0.

Archive description: A variety of calls from a small flock of crows high in a stand of pine at a suburban nature preserve.

The group label comes from source metadata. Source observations, where supplied, are the recordist’s account; they are not a reviewed answer key or a translation.

Inspect the original recording and source notes

Open the original sound picture

Locate this recording in the atlas Open audio file

Juvenile and adult calls in one file

Field recording · 29 seconds

A 28.9-second original recorded by Jonathon Jongsma. The source’s juvenile/adult description is context, not a validated per-sound answer key.

Frequency over time for juvenile and adult calls in one file. Read the source notes below for the archive's description. — Read left to right as time passes; higher marks represent higher frequencies. Colour shows recorded energy, not the bird’s intent. Recording levels affect brightness.

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Recording source and limits

Archive identifier: xc80525.

Jonathon Jongsma, 2011-06-09. CC BY-SA 3.0.

Archive description: higher-pitched begging calls from a juvenile, and some adult calls

The group label comes from source metadata. Source observations, where supplied, are the recordist’s account; they are not a reviewed answer key or a translation.

Inspect the original recording and source notes

Open the original sound picture

Locate this recording in the atlas Open audio file

Check the evidence · no acoustic score

What can you safely take from the juvenile-and-adult source note?

Use the explanation and source notes above. Choices last for this visit and are not sent to analytics.

Read the explanation

The note describes juvenile and adult calls. It does not prove an exact number of callers or identify every high-frequency sound.

Follow the evidence

Cornell Lab’s American crow sound guide

Source descriptions provide context. Recording labels and listening examples await independent acoustic review; these questions check visible facts, not recognition of unfamiliar calls.

Make this a listening habit

Six skills, at your own pace. An exploration mark means you chose to finish a lesson; it does not certify call recognition. Marks stay in this browser, with no account or synchronization.